Know Mahtab

Feb 19

Mahtab comes from Shalbafan of Heart where she lived with her husband and two daughters. However, her drug addicted husband led Mahtab to separate from him, because living with him had caused her a major economic drawback. Mahtab’s husband would even sell most of home appliances to buy opium.

Once Mahtab decided to divorce him, her husband resisted to keep their children with him. Fearful of her husband’s bad habit which would leave a negative impact on the kids, Mahtab asked for help from her brother-in-law. He spoke with his brother and resolved the matter by giving the children back to her.

Mahtab learned about Zardozi’s work and attended some tailoring sessions. But, she could not extract much out of tailoring and the income could not cover all of her home’s bills and rents. The competition was high in the neighborhood while her income did not allow her to develop her business. She finally asked Zardozi to introduce her to an office or house which is safe for her to work as a cleaner. Getting the job at one of the offices, Mahtab started to earn enough to pay for majority of her expenses. She still sews clothes besides her full time job, when she needs more money.

“Being a single parent is not easy. You have to protect yourself and children from all kinds of challenges which arise for women in Afghanistan,” said Mahtab.